15 Year Old Arrested For Taking Nude Photos Of Herself.

An unidentified 15 year old used her cell phone to take nude photos of herself. She then proceed to distribute them to a few of her friends. Well this young girl has learned that “good girls” don’t participate in exhibitionism. She has been arrested and charged with:illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material, a second degree felony; and possession of criminal tools, a fifth degree felony.

It is up to the judge whether or not the girl is charged as a sex offender. If it is decided that she is indeed a sex offender she will have to register as such for the next twenty years.

How is it possible to commit a sexual offence against yourself? This is nothing more than slut shaming and social discipline. This is her body and she made an independent decision to display it. In a world where girls are pledging their virginity to their fathers and people are attempting to have birth control outlawed, can it really come as a surprise that it is now illegal to take nude photos of yourself?

Patriarchy will not be happy until women have returned en masse to the household; serving all the needs and desires of men. Slut shaming, physical violence, murder and rape are the tactics of the never ending war against women that is taking place. Disciplining our sexuality is a way of controlling our bodies and removing agency and free will from women. We cannot afford to look at these incidences as individual occurrences because nothing happens outside of social construction. Should she be found guilty of exploiting and abusing herself, it will reinforce the idea that our bodies do not truly belong to us.

Using this as a slut shaming tactic further diminishes the children that are actually subject to sexual abuse by predators. How can taking a picture of yourself equate to being raped or forced to perform sexual acts? The global assault against children should never be reduced in this way. It makes a mockery of their pain and suffering.